Rising batting sensation Sai Sudharsan’s eminently graceful hundred beautifully complemented pacer Rajvardhan Hangargekar’s five-wicket haul as India A crushed Pakistan A by eight wickets to end the league stage with a record all wins in the Emerging Asia Cup in Colombo on Wednesday. Pakistan batted first, Pakistan was all out for 205 in 48 overs, Hangargekar took 5 for 42 in eight overs and then Sudharsan’s unbeaten 104 off 110 balls saw the meager target surpassed in 36.4 overs.
In fact, Sudharsan drew senior Pakistani team pacer Shahnawaz Dahani for back-to-back sixes to complete his fourth list hundred.
His 99-run second wicket partnership with Kerala man Nikin Jose (53 off 64 balls) literally ended Pakistan’s hopes of a comeback.
Sudharsan, who was equally good against Nepal last night, hit 10 boundaries but three sixes. His driving on both sides of the wicket was regal once set. The most impressive part of his at bat was nearly 40 basehits he took to keep the bat going.
Credit must be given to skipper Yash Dhull (21 not off 19 balls), who allowed Sudharsan to go for the milestone, getting most of the battle during their 53-run stand.
With two needed for a win and his century, Sudharsan Dahani hit for a superb six over extra cover to end the game.
“I concentrated more on risk free runs. I concentrated on ones and twos and reducing point balls. Against spinners it was an unpredictable and difficult wicket to hit. It was better to compete against fast bowlers,” said Sudharsan after the match.
However, Hangargekar and left arm spinner Manav Suthar (3/36 in 10 overs) deserve equal credit for limiting Pakistani batters as no one got even to fifty.
If Qasim Akram (48) and Mubasir Khan (28) had not added 53 for the seventh wicket, the Pakistan team’s total would not have received the semblance of respect it eventually got.
Hangargekar, the muscular Maharashtra man, bounces back from the height stuff with occasional fuller deliveries that do the trick. The pace is in and around 140 clicks, which made it hard for the best hitters to drive up.
Sutar, the Rajasthan man, also varied his pace and used the loop to good effect to get his share of the firings.
(This story has not been edited by DailyExpertNews staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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